


Car Crash

by aravenwood



Series: Febuwhump '19 [16]
Category: Stargate Atlantis
Genre: Gen, Hurt Rodney, Hurt/Comfort, Protective John
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-16
Updated: 2019-02-16
Packaged: 2019-10-29 20:23:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 962
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17814914
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aravenwood/pseuds/aravenwood
Summary: "What in god's name happened to your face?"Written for the Febuwhump '19 prompt.





	Car Crash

**Author's Note:**

> I had about five different ideas for this prompt, three different fandoms and no idea of how to write any of them. But finally this was born. Or maybe it hatched like a really weird, angsty duck.
> 
> Enjoy!

“What in god’s name happened to your face?” John spluttered as he caught sight of Rodney for the first time in two weeks. Two weeks of leave, two weeks of pretending that he was just like everyone else, like he didn’t spend most of his time stationed in another galaxy entirely. Once upon a time he would have looked forward to a little time to himself, back at home and enjoying the simple things in life like being able to watch TV until 4am and not having to deal with the constant threat of attack by the Wraith. And really, he was happy to be back on Earth after being cut off. But the relief had worn off quickly and soon he was counting down the days before he could return. Apparently an ordinary life just wasn’t for him these days.

Rodney’s leave had clearly been a lot more eventful if the bruising around his eye and stitching on his forehead were any indication. He was holding himself stiffly, as if the slightest movement was causing him a lot of pain, and John felt a wave of protectiveness as he realised that something had happened to his friend when he wasn’t there to keep an eye on him. Someone had hurt his friend.

“I’m fine,” Rodney snapped and crossed his arms over his chest. He winced slightly at the movement and his jaw tightened as he gritted his teeth together.

John frowned. McKay was never fine, even when he was. There was always some disaster, some huge thing to rant about for forty five minutes even when it was clear that no one was really listening. He could pull a crisis out of thin air, could make anything sound like a life or death situation. He was never just “fine”.

And of all the times, now clearly wasn’t a time to start that. “McKay…” John sighed. “Something happened, I want to know what and I want to know why I wasn’t told sooner.”

“Why would you be told in the first place? We were in different states, most likely, and it’s not like you didn’t have better things to do than worry about what I was doing. I’m sure you were plenty busy, Major,” McKay said tightly.

John thought back to all of those nights where he’d ended up falling asleep on his sofa after too many episodes of whatever boxset he’d settled on that evening. He thought about all the days he’d walked aimlessly through the city, all the trips to bars he’d never tried before. Busy wasn’t a word he would use.

He didn’t tell McKay any of that, just frowned at him and crossed his arms defensively over his chest. “Why wouldn’t I be told? Whether we’re on Atlantis or not, you’re still a member of my team and I need to know if something happens to you.” And you’re my friend, of course I care what happens to you. But he couldn’t bring himself to say the last part – his relationship with McKay just didn’t include those kinds of sentiments.

He regretted that, though, as pain flashed across McKay’s expression for a moment before it was covered by irritation. But that too faltered, and behind it McKay just looked…tired. “If you must know, I was…I was in a car accident,” he admitted, his voice barely louder than a whisper. His eyes were fixed on a point just beyond John’s shoulder.

“A car accident?” John spluttered. He looked Rodney up and down, registering for the first time the bruising which peeked out from his collar, the shallow cut on his neck, the way he was hunched over as if his ribs were hurting. “Why didn’t you tell me? Did you have someone staying with you?” All of John’s calm was gone, replaced by concern and protectiveness for the man he considered to be his best friend.

McKay met his eyes then, and John couldn’t help but notice the surprise in them. “I was…I was fine,” Rodney whispered.

“That doesn’t answer my question,” John pointed out.

“Because I don’t want to answer it!”

John took a step back at the anger in McKay’s voice, and lifted his hands in surrender. He opened his mouth, ready to push further, but then it clicked. “No one knew, did they?” His chest ached at the thought of McKay all alone through that trauma; through the examination at the hospital and the recovery, through the memories of exactly what happened. He didn’t know how badly McKay had been hurt, but he knew that it could be frightening to go through an accident of any kind.

McKay didn’t give him a verbal answer, but he didn’t need one. The pain in his expression said it all. “It was…I was fine.” There was no strength in his words.

“Rodney.”

“Look, it wasn’t like there was any reason for anyone to know!” he snapped.

“No emergency contact?”

There was no response, but McKay blushed and lowered his head. That just didn’t sit right with John. The idea that anything could have happened to McKay in the two weeks he was alone made him feel sick.

“Add me,” he said firmly.

McKay’s head bounced up. “What?”

“To your emergency contacts. Next time something like this happens I want to know about it.” John spoke slowly like he was talking to a toddler. Sometimes McKay needed that when it came to things like this – things that involved people and friendships and emotions.

“Why would you do that?” he asked quietly, staring at John with wide eyes. It was rare to see him quite so confused about anything.

John smiled softly. “Because I want to be there for you. I don’t want you to suffer alone.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading!


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